Electronic wind controllers have come a long way and screaming at the front of the pack is the Akai EWI4000s. Sam Ash Direct has the guaranteed lowest price and fast free, shipping.

The Akai EWI4000s is the first fully self contained professional wind controller with sound modeling technology. Instead of being tethered to a separate sound module, the EWI4000s electronic wind instrument lets you plug in a wireless midi or audio transmitter and move freely about the stage or club. Its lightweight battery powered design makes it easy to play for hours on stage. Out of the box, the EWI4000s comes set up with sax fingering, but you can easily switch to brass, flute, and other wind fingerings through the included editor software. This is the perfect alternate instrument for all woodwind and brass players.

The on-board sounds of the AKAI EWI4000s include 99 breathtaking creations of analog modeling technology. Akai even includes software to edit the sounds to your specifications on a Mac or PC, putting all your favorites right at your fingertips. If you have a favorite synth or sampling module, you can use the built in midi interface to control their sounds from your EWI4000s.

THe AKAI EWI4000s electronic wind instrument, gives you all of the expressiveness of the finest woodwinds and brass horns. A mouthpiece with a breath sensor allows complete, expressive control. Wireless midi and audio can be set up in the base of the EWI4000s, making cables a thing of the past.

The keys are touch sensitive and provide portamento adding to the overall expressiveness of the instrument. It also includes an octave roller for automatic doubling of the notes you play one octave below. Hold mode allows you to hold a note while soloing around it. All this makes the Akai EWI4000s quick and responsive when coaxing out convincing sounds and a joy to play, be it on stage or in the studio.

To round things off there are built in effects such as reverb, chorus and delay, all of which can be stored with your custom patches. The comfortable mouthpiece adapts to your breath level, bringing you that much closer to a true wind playing experience.

It’s built well, feels sturdy, but is light around your neck or in your hands. The EWI4000s has a ¼” audio line out and a 1/8” headphone jack for private listening together with MIDI I/O. It runs on 4 AA batteries but can also be powered by an AC adaptor. (the optional MP9-II ).

Priced affordably and within reach of the gigging musician, the Akai EWI4000s is a dream come true for those who dare to step into the electronic wind controller world. Now blow it!

Have not had a chance to play it yet, sure it will be great! Just wanted to comment on shipping. Manufacturer's box received with Fed Ex label just applied to it, box not taped, and most importantly, not put into a slightly larger box with packing protection. Called customer service and was told this is standard. Would suggest requesting better packing when you order from Sam Ash to protect your investment. Not really a negative, just a caution, Thanks.

"I've tried other wind controllers and this one is by far the most expressive. I love the fact that I can now go completely wireless, and I'm even considering going with the wireless MIDI rig so I can access more sounds. The pressure sensitive bite control and octave rollers on the bottom of the EWI are outstanding. I also grabbed the latest software update with the valve instrument fingering and my friend who plays trumpet thought it was very cool. I think the age of Electronic Wind Instruments has finally come of age, I love it!"